TEENAGER Sami Safder bought himself a motorbike, went round to a mate's house, smoked a joint and set off for home.

He never arrived.

Less than an hour after buying his bike, the bright and popular 17-year-old was killed in a road crash, leaving his family facing what they describe as a life sentence without him.

Sami's death has prompted a coroner to warn the public about the dangers of driving under the influence of cannabis.

York Coroner Donald Coverdale made his remarks during an inquest into Sami's death.

"If any good is to come out of this awful event perhaps there may be a recognition that cannabis use coupled with driving is dangerous," said Mr Coverdale.

Sami's mother, Julie Safder, told the Evening Press she and her family were beginning a "life sentence" without a "brilliant minded son, brother and mate."

An inquest in York heard how Sami, an apprentice electri-cian with Nestl, had bought the red Suzuki RG125 motorbike from a man he knew in Huntington less than an hour before his death.

The inquest heard how the teenager, from New Lane, Huntington, died on September 19, 2003, when his bike smashed in to a car on the A64 at Stockton-on-the-Forest.

After buying the bike, the court heard Sami drove to a friend's house in Sand Hutton, smoked a joint and headed home at 5.15pm along the A64 towards York.

Eye-witness Susan Lorraine Plevey told the inquest she was stuck in traffic at the cross roads turn off for Stockton-on-the-Forest and Strensall on a single carriageway stretch of the A64 at around 5.30pm.

She was stationary and let two cars cut across going in the direction of Stockton-on-the-Forest when a motorbike came through past her driver's door and collided with the rear of the second turning car, a left-hand drive Mercedes estate driven by a German tourist.

A post-mortem examination revealed Sami died from a fractured base of the skull and injuries to his brain and toxicology tests showed cannabis present in his blood.

An examination of the bike showed it was in a "dangerous condition", had a defec-tive brake and would have failed an MOT.

Recording a verdict of accidental death, Mr Coverdale said it was difficult to say what part the condition of the bike had to play in the accident.

Updated: 10:21 Friday, October 22, 2004